Darjeeling, Dec. 7: Christians belonging to different denominations in the hill town have decided to come together and celebrate Christmas this year.
Ever since Martin Luther nailed his ?95 Theses? on the door of Wittenberg Cathedral to announce the Reformation in 1517, a simmering tension between followers of the two major branches of Christianity ? the Catholics and Protestants ? came into existence.
Almost 40 churches from Darjeeling have decided to organise a grand Christmas celebration at Chowrastha on December 17 and December 18 in a first of its kind unity move in the hills.
S. Rongong, the first woman pastor from Darjeeling, said: ?We follow the same Lord and now we can spread the message of love and unity together. We are looking forward to the event.?
Representatives of all the churches will meet at 2 pm at Chowrastha on December 17, after which the members present will sing Christmas carols and spread the message of the Lord. The next day, the representatives of the community will bring out a procession in the town, following which the churches will put up their performance to celebrate the birth of Christ.
?We will not lead the procession through the main street, but will divert it from the Bata shop at Chowk Bazar. We do not want to create a traffic snarl with our procession and cause inconvenience to the general public despite the fact that the occasion calls for celebration,? said Rongong, a Protestant.
Bishop Stephen Lepcha, who is the driving force behind uniting the Christians of the hill town, said things were changing for the good.
?Relations between the two denominations have improved ever since the Darjeeling United Christian Minority Society came into existence,? said Bishop Lepcha, who is the head of the Catholic denomination of the region. Though the society, which was formed around five years ago, has been able to bring the entire Christian fraternity of the hill town under a common umbrella, an event of this magnitude has never been held before.
?The celebration will definitely help cement the spirit of brotherhood among the Christians in the hills,? said Bishop Lepcha.
